All posts by CPNN Coordinator

About CPNN Coordinator

Dr David Adams is the coordinator of the Culture of Peace News Network. He retired in 2001 from UNESCO where he was the Director of the Unit for the International Year for the Culture of Peace, proclaimed for the Year 2000 by the United Nations General Assembly.

Voices of young climate action activists ‘give me hope’ says UN chief

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from UN News

In the wake of Friday’s demonstrations by schoolchildren across the world against climate change inaction, the UN Secretary-General has said he understands their fears, but is hopeful for the future.


(click on image to enlarge)

In a direct message to the youth activists who took to the streets, UN chief António Guterres said that he understood the anxiety and “fear for the future” behind their actions but added that “humankind is capable of enormous achievements. Your voices give me hope.”

Writing in an opinion piece for The Guardian, Mr. Guterres said that the more he witnessed the “commitment and activism” of young people who were fed up with the pace of the international response to global warming, “the more confident I am that we will win. Together, with your help and thanks to your efforts, we can and must beat this threat and create a cleaner, safer, greener world for everyone,” he added.

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Question for this article:


Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

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“These schoolchildren have grasped something that seems to elude many of their elders”, he said, adding that “we are in a race for our lives, and we are losing. The window of opportunity is closing; we no longer have the luxury of time, and climate delay is almost as dangerous as climate denial.”

The Secretary-General acknowledged that his older generation “has failed to respond properly to the dramatic challenge of climate change.  This is deeply felt by young people. No wonder they are angry.”

Global emissions are reaching record levels, and continuing to rise, he said, adding that concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is the highest it has been in 3 million years.

“The last four years were the four hottest on record, and winter temperatures in the Arctic have risen by 3°C since 1990,” he added, noting also rising sea levels, the death of coral reefs, and a growing threat to human health worldwide, as made clear in the UN’s Global Environmental Outlook, published this week.

The historic 2015 Paris Agreement  signed by more than 190 countries to keep global emissions well below 2°C, “itself is meaningless without ambitious action,” said the UN chief.

“That is why I am bringing world leaders together at a Climate Action Summit  later this year. I am calling on all leaders to come to New York in September with concrete, realistic plans to enhance their nationally determined contributions by 2020, in line with reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent over the next decade, and to net zero by 2050.”

The latest analysis shows that if we act now, we can reduce carbon emissions within 12 years and limit global warming to 1.5°” said Mr. Guterres. “But if we continue along our current path, the consequences are impossible to predict.”
 

“Momentum is building:, he added, “people are listening and there is a new determination to unleash the promise of the Paris Agreement. The Climate Summit must be the starting point to build the future we need.”

global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, United Nations,

Kids on strike for the climate in New York

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

by CPNN Coordinator

I had a chance to go to the march and demonstration of school students in New York against climate change on Friday, March 15. There were a series of demonstrations ending up with a big enthusisastic crowd at the Museum of Natural History.

The average age was under 20. I’d have to back to the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s to remember big demonstrations with majority youth. Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?


(click on image to enlarge)

Here are some of the chants that they sang out loud and clear :

Stop the pollution; We have the solution!

Show me what democracy looks like; This is what democracy looks like!

Hey Hey Ho Ho, Fossil fuels have got to go!

We speak for the trees; we speak for the trees!

What do we need: a system change; When do we need it? NOW!

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Question for this article:


Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

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Here are some of their colorful, hand-lettered placards :

There is no plan(et) B

One people One planet

I always wondered why somebody didn’t do something. Then I realized I was the somebody!

“I want you to act as if the house is on fire – because it is! – Greta Thunburg

It’s not nice to frack with Mother Earth

No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that ceated it – A. Einstein

Respect existence or expect resistance !

Dear T-rump, climate change will get you too ! (with the image of a Tyrannosaurus dinosaur)

Break the climate silence !

Youth strikes harder when climate change strikes !

Change is coming whether you like it or not !

And here’s one from the next generation:

Marching with these kids becuse I’m too scared to have children of my own.

North America, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Spanish youth rebel against climate change and begin to strike: “Friday for the future”

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Simone Renn in La Politica (translation by CPNN)

Spanish youth demand to achieve the 17 goals and goals of sustainable development of the UN by 2030. They have listened to the young Swede Greta Thunberg, who started the “Friday Strikes on Climate Change” last year and decided to join her.


Video by the youth

At the end of August 2018, this young activist stood every day for three weeks in front of the Swedish Parliament to demand that her Government comply with the Paris Agreement on climate. Greta was also present at the UN Climate Summit, COP24, which was held in the Polish city of Katowice from December 2 to 14, where she said loud and clear what she thought and how we should begin to act immediately to save the Earth and save the future of today’s youth.

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(Click here for the original Spanish version.)

Question for this article:


Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

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The collective “Youth for the climate” was formed in Spain by groups of young people who joined as a collective last February and who are organized in assemblies. Eight weeks ago these young people decided that they had to strik along with young people in Europe and around the world.

Today, Friday, March 15, young people from more than 1,000 cities around the world have joined the “Fridays for future” movement. In Spain, 45 mobilizations have been called, all of them with great success.

The young people of the world are denouncing the economic interests that lead people to “do nothing to stop climate change”, which means that they will not have a future.

They accuse the adult generation, with all the reason in the world, of leaving them an inheritance of a land without a future, due to selfishness, to the comfort of not facing policies based on “constant growth” on a planet whose resources are finite, as Ecology Economics explains very well.

The 15-year-old Greta, who gives speeches about the environment with implacable coherence, has become a symbol of adolescent activism and young people are listening to her.

Today has been the largest strike of young people for the environment in the history of our country, and they warn that they will continue with strikes each Friday, if we adults do not behave as responsible beings carrying out the environmental measures demanded by the UN to be carried out by 2030.

Europe, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Global Climate Strike in Pictures: Millions of Students Walk Out to Demand Planetary Transformation

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Julia Conley in Common Dreams reprinted according to a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License

All over the planet on Friday, millions of children and young adults walked out of their classrooms in an unprecedented collective action to demand a radical and urgent shift in society’s energy and economic systems in order to avert the worst impacts of human-caused global warming and climate change.

In the United Kingdom, thousands of young people were among the millions worldwide who called on their governments to declare a climate emergency and take action to stop the climate crisis. (Photo: Chris J. Ratcliffe/Getty Images)

With demonstrations in more than 100 countries and tens of thousands of schools, the worldwide Climate Strike is the largest since 16-year-old Greta Thunberg sparked a wave of increasingly huge marches and walkouts with her one-person strike outside the Swedish Parliament last year.  


Since then, Thunberg has admonished and appealed to world leaders at COP24 and Davos, successfully securing a commitment from the European Union to fight the climate crisis while inspiring strikes all over the world. European students began holding weekly walkouts in Brussels in December, while Australian, and German young people are among those who have organized strikes as well. 

“We have been born into this world and we have to live with this crisis, and our children and our grandchildren,” Thunberg told a crowd of her peers in Stockholm in Friday. “We are facing the greatest existential crisis humanity has ever faced. And yet it has been ignored. You who have ignored it know who you are.”

In Pictures:


People hold up signs and vent their frustrations during a Climate Change Awareness rally at Sydney Town Hall on March 15, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. The protests are part of a global climate strike, urging politicians to take urgent action on climate change. (Photo by Don Arnold/Getty Images)


The scene on Westminster bridge as school children block traffic and march across the river on March 15, 2019 in London, England. Thousands of pupils from schools, colleges and universities across the UK will walk out today in the second major strike against climate change this year. Young people nationwide are calling on the Government to declare a climate emergency and take action. Similar strikes are taking place around the world today including in Japan and Australia, inspired by 16-year-old Greta Thunberg who criticised world leaders at a United Nations climate conference. (Photo by Guy Smallman/Getty Images)


Environmentalists and concerned citizens gather and hold a picket to voice out concern on environmental and climate issues on March 15, 2019 in Quezon city, Philippines. Students around the world took to the streets on March 15 to protest a lack of climate awareness and demand that elected officials take action on climate change. Inspired by Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old environmental activist who started skipping school since August 2018 to protest outside Sweden’s parliament, school and university students worldwide have followed her lead and shared her alarm and anger. (Photo by Jes Aznar/Getty Images)


Greta Thunberg participates in a strike outside of the Swedish parliament house, Riksdagen, in order to raise awareness for global climate change on March 15, 2019 in Stockholm, Sweden. (Photo by MICHAEL CAMPANELLA/Getty Images)


Schoolchildren take part in the Global Climate Strike For Future on March 15, 2019 in Rome, Italy. Today, thousands of students took part in the Student Global Climate Strike to demand for urgent measures and concrete action to combat climate change, the global warming and to protect our future. The strike is inspired by Greta Thunberg, a Swedish school girl who in 2018 went on school strike to make adults and lawmakers take climate change action. (Photo: Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)


@Greenpeace #FridaysForFuture #climatestrike #schoolstrike4climate Uganda it’s happening

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Question for this article:


Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

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@MikeHudema LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THE MARCH IN BRUSSELS!!! Young people are rising in 2052 places in 123 countries on every continents.


@EricHolthaus Sign in St. Paul Minnesota:
”If you don’t act like adults, we will.”#climatestrike #FridaysForFuture

@Greenpeace Officially more than 150,000 students on #ClimateStrike in Montreal, the number just came in!! #FridaysForFuture #schoolstrike4climate #YouthStrike4Climate


@lifelearner47 Oh boy, look what happened in Lisbon, Portugal.#FridaysForFuture #ClimateStrike


@350 In Kyiv, Ukraine, 100+ students appealed to Prime Minister Volodymyr Groisman and the govt to recognize climate change as one of the most pressing nationwide problems and to take appropriate action. #Climatestrike took place in six cities in Ukraine.
Photos: Olena Angelova


@MikeHudema HUGE! crowd out in #Barcelona as far as the eye can see. Young people are rising in 2052 places in 123 countries on every continents.


@MauroAstete Mientras algunos discuten por control de identidad a menores, #AdmisiónJusta u otras pequeñeces, los jóvenes solo piden tener un futuro para vivir ¿Se lo daremos? @sebastianpinera @MMAChile @CarolaSchmidtZ #FridaysForFuture #Santiago #climatechange


Oladosu Adenike @the_ecofeminist Its my 16 weeks
”Our earth is on fire”#ClimateStrike#FridaysForFuture in Nigeria.
Now is the time for us to actions.


@AntoineTifine We are thousands of people in #Paris for the global strike for climate ! #Youth4Climate #FridayForFuture @GretaThunberg @FYEG @YouthFrance


@munwarenj #climatestrike #fridaysforfuture #Bangladesh #barishal

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Mission Statement of American Youth Climate Strike

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

Statement on website of the Youth Climate Strike Campaign

We, the youth of America, are striking because decades of inaction has left us with just 11 years to change the trajectory of the worst effects of climate change, according to the Oct 2018 UN IPCC Report. We are striking because our world leaders have yet to acknowledge, prioritize, or properly address our climate crisis. We are striking because marginalized communities across our nation —especially communities of color, disabled communities, and low- income communities—  are already disproportionately impacted by climate change. We are striking because if the social order is disrupted by our refusal to attend school, then the system is forced to face the climate crisis and enact change. With our futures at stake, we call for radical legislative action to combat climate change and its countless detrimental effects on the American people. We are striking for the Green New Deal, for a fair and just transition to a 100% renewable economy, and for ending the creation of additional fossil fuel infrastructure. Additionally, we believe the climate crisis should be declared a national emergency because we are running out of time.

Our Demands

Green New Deal

*An equitable transition for marginalized communities that will be most impacted by climate change


* An equitable transition for fossil-fuel reliant communities to a renewable economy


* 100% renewable energy by 2030


* Upgrading the current electric grid


* No creation of additional fossil fuel infrastructure (pipelines, coal plants, fracking etc.)


* The creation of a committee to oversee the implementation of a Green New Deal

. . That has subpoena power


. . Committee members can’t take fossil fuel industry donations


. . Accepts climate science


A halt in any and all fossil fuel infrastructure projects

* Fossil fuel infrastructure disproportionately impacts indigenous communities and communities of color in a negative way


* Creating new fossil fuel infrastructure would create new reliance on fossil fuels at a time of urgency


All decisions made by the government be tied in scientific research, including the 2018 IPCC report

* The world needs to reduce GHG emissions by 50% by 2030, and 100% by 2050


* We need to incorporate this fact into all policymaking


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Question for this article:


Are we seeing the dawn of a global youth movement?

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Declaring a National Emergency on Climate Change

* This calls for a national emergency because we have 11 years to avoid catastrophic climate change


* Since the US has empirically been a global leader, we should be a leader on climate action


* Since the US largely contributes to global GHG emissions, we should be leading the fight in GHG reduction


Compulsory comprehensive education on climate change and its impacts throughout grades K-8

* K-8 is the ideal age range for compulsory climate change education because:

* Impressionability is high during that developmental stage, therefore it’s easier for children and young adults to learn about climate change in a more in-depth manner, and retain that information


* Climate change becomes a nonpartisan issue, as it truly is because it’s based solely on science from the beginning


Preserving our public lands and wildlife

* Diverse ecosystems and national parks will be very impacted by climate change, therefore it’s important that we work to the best of our abilities to preserve their existence


Keeping our water supply clean

* Clean water is essential for all living beings, when we pollute our water supply, or the water supply of someone else, it’s simply a violation of an essential human right


Our Solutions

* The extraction of Greenhouse Gases from the atmosphere

. . Reforestation– replenishing our forests by planting trees and allowing them to thrive, sustainable forestry


. . Reduced food waste– methane emissions from rotting food in landfills contributes immensely to overall Greenhouse Gases emissions


* Emission standards and benchmarks

. . We need to create standards and benchmarks for reducing Greenhouse Gases that align with those expressed by the science community to avoid 2° Celsius warming


* Changing the agriculture industry

. . Less carbon-intensive farming


. . More plant-based farming


* Using renewable energy and building renewable energy infrastructure


* Stopping the unsustainable and dangerous process of fracking


* Stop mountaintop removal/mining

. . It is very harmful to our environment and people working in these fields


* These are not the sole solutions, these are just some solutions that we approve of

* To be effective, these solutions need to be implemented at a large scale by the United States government

North America, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

United Nations: Young People Discuss Change at CSW62 Youth Dialogue

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

An article from UN News

Building on the successes and lessons learnt from the Youth Forums of CSW60 and CSW61, the Youth Dialogue at CSW62 held on 17 March 2018 provided a space for cross-regional networking among young people engaged in various areas of gender and social justice. Following the theme of the Commission of the Status of Women, the Youth Dialogue at CSW62 provided a stage for young women, girls, trans, intersex and gender non-conforming youth from rural areas to raise their voices, address the challenges and opportunities in achieving gende equality and empowering their peers.

The opening of the Youth Dialogue was attended by Executive Director of UN Women Ms. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka and moderated by the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth Ms. Jayathma Wickramanayake.

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Question for this article

Youth initiatives for a culture of peace, How can we ensure they get the attention and funding they deserve?

What is the United Nations doing for a culture of peace?

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The Youth Envoy framed the conversation by emphasizing that “We are the largest generation of young people that the world has ever seen. We are 1.8 billion strong and if we are to see transformational change, then it is our generation, that can make that change happen.” By sharing their personal stories, the panel of youth activist gave concrete examples of creative ways to open doors and thereby highlighted how young people mobilize to make change in their communities every day.
More than 300 young people participated in the Youth Dialogue, which provided a space to exchange ideas on how young woman and girls from rural areas can be increasingly involved in addressing issues that directly affect them  such as climate change, health, land rights and environment, education, gender-based violence, child marriage, economic justice, and media and technology. With the principle of leaving no one behind as an overarching theme for the conversation, the Youth Dialogue also included young people from various marginalized and vulnerable groups, such as persons with disabilities, indigenous communities and communities in conflict and post-conflict settings.

Based on a series of online youth consultations and break-out sessions during the Dialogue, a set of recommendations to policy makers were developed on how to better include the voices of young women and girls from rural areas in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Among these were specific recommendations to provide accessible education to enhance skills development for young girls in rural areas; strengthen laws to prevent and respond to all forms of gender-based violence; implement progressive legislation that addresses the gender pay gap; improving connectivity in rural areas to bridge the existing digital gap; and investing in quality and inclusive youth-friendly healthcare, including mental health and sexual and reproductive health and rights services in rural areas.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, global, United Nations,

World animal protection: Five amazing Sea Warrior women tackling ghost gear on a global scale

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from World Animal Protection

Five sea warriors – women from different corners of the globe are leading our work to tackle the problem of ghost gear in our oceans.


Left to right: Chris Dixon, Elizabeth Hogan and Ingrid Giskes

*Note: While job titles and roles may have changed, we continue to applaud and celebrate the work of these five inspiring women.*

This remarkable group of women – and their colleagues across the world – are fighting together to stop the unnecessary slow and painful deaths of millions of animals.

Every year, more than 100,000 whales, dolphins, seals and turtles are caught in ‘ghost gear’ – abandoned, lost and discarded fishing nets, lines and traps which can take up to 600 years to decompose.

A staggering 640,000 tons of fishing equipment is left in our oceans each year. The vast majority of ghost gear is made of plastics that take centuries to degrade.

Animals caught in this incredibly durable fishing gear then suffer a prolonged and painful death, usually suffocating or starving to death over several months. Devastating reports show that over 817 species of marine life are affected by this marine litter. Some lost nets drifting in the oceans are enormous – far bigger than football pitches. The nets drift stealthily under the surface trapping and killing marine life under the surface.

Lynn Kavanagh is our Oceans and Wildlife Campaign Manager and is based here in Canada.

One of the most exciting projects Lynn was involved in for the Sea Change campaign was working to remove a 25-year-old purse seine net situated near Pender Island, BC. The derelict net had been in the same location for many years where it killed large numbers of marine animals. Lynn’s team removed a whopping 4,600 pounds of deadly netting.

Elizabeth Hogan works for World Animal Protection in the United States, where she specializes in marine wildlife entanglement, reducing marine debris, working on whaling policy and wildlife in captivity.

For the last five years, she has researched the impact of derelict fishing gear on marine mammals and worked on establishing rescue networks and protocols for entangled marine life.

Elizabeth is a contributing author to two books on corporate social responsibility. She has a degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a dual Master of Science in Marine & Coastal Natural Resources as well as a Master of Science in Sustainable Development from the University for Peace in Costa Rica and American University in Washington, DC.

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Question for this article:

What is the relation between the environment and peace

Do women have a special role to play in the peace movement?

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Elizabeth recently traveled to Alaska on a mission to rescue and free entangled seals and sea lions along the Alaskan coastline, an area where animals are especially vulnerable to entanglement.

Ingrid Giskes leads the global Sea Change Campaign at World Animal Protection. Originally from Belgium, she has worked for the organization for more than six years and is now based in Sydney, Australia.

On any one day, Ingrid could be talking to governments at the United Nations, working with companies such as Young’s Seafood on corporate social responsibility, and meeting with generous supporters.

Ingrid has worked on projects all over the world, but the start of a project in Indonesia earlier this year was a highlight. Ingrid went to Jakarta with an idea of what a project on gear marking could look like but developed the actual project proposal with local partners over several days to ensure it would be practical and sustainable. Hearing about the realities of the local people, considering their livelihoods and food security was eye opening.

Ingrid previously worked for Amnesty International on refugee issues after a stint of studying and working in Hangzhou, China.

Ingrid lives in a cottage next to the beach and is a keen swimmer, runner and snorkeler – the ocean and the life within it, inspires her every day.

Christina Dixon is based in London and is World Animal Protection’s Oceans Campaign Manager. Chris has worked on a huge number of projects to help remove ghost gear from the oceans.

From joining a dive vessel in Wales to remove ghost gear, writing a proposal for a project in Scotland to map and recover lost gear, and organizing meetings with seafood companies to talk about how addressing ghost gear can be beneficial to their supply chains, Chris’ job is varied.

Her most inspiring trip was working with a team of divers in Scapa Flow in Orkney, Scotland where she spent five days eating, sleeping and working on a boat at sea to problem solve the issue of lost gear collected on the WW2 wrecks in Scapa Flow. The project is now entering its third year and a staggering amount of gear has been removed.

When not saving whales and dolphins and campaigning at the United Nations, Chris plays bass in two punk bands and is a roller derby athlete, hoping to compete in the world cup next year.

Chiara Vitali is the wildlife campaigner for our UK office. Chiara has been passionate about animal welfare since starting her first petition at the age of 11 against the fur industry in Italy, where she grew up. Chiara spends lots of time with the amazing people who are working on the ground at the local level to remove ghost gear from the sea, where they rescue entangled animals and prevent more gear from ending up in the oceans.

One of Chiara’s most rewarding field trips was a visit to a Cornish wreck off the coast of Penzance where she helped retrieve a huge trawler net that would have killed many animals over the next few hundred years.

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Photos: International Women’s Day marked by strikes, protests and celebrations

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY .

An photo essay from the Public Broadcasting System with additional photos as indicated

Marches and protests are being held Friday [March 8] across the globe to mark International Women’s Day under the slogan #BalanceforBetter, with calls for a more gender-balanced world. The day, sponsored by the United Nations since 1975, celebrates women’s achievements and aims to further their rights.

INDIA


Girls shout slogans during a protest demanding equal rights for women on the occasion of International Women’s Day in New Delhi, India. Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters

In India, hundreds of women marched on the streets of New Delhi demanding an end to domestic violence, sexual attacks and discrimination in jobs.

Boys are prized more than girls in India. Thousands of Indian women are killed — often doused in gasoline and burned to death — every year because the groom or his family feel the dowry she brought to the wedding was inadequate.

Political parties in India have for years been promising 33 percent of seats for women in the country’s Parliament, but they have yet to enact legislation to that effect.

SPAIN


A woman wears a mask that reads “Feminist Strike” as she takes part in a bike protest during a nationwide feminist strike on International Women’s Day in Madrid, Spain. Photo by Sergio Perez/Reuters

Thousands of women walked off the job in Spain, joining millions more around the world demanding equality amid a persistent salary gap, violence and widespread inequality.

Women’s rights have become one of the hot topics in the run-up to a general election in Spain next month. Many female employees didn’t show up to work Friday. Others halted domestic work or left to men the care of children and ill or elderly people.

PORTUGAL


Sandra Delgadillo, a domestic worker from Bolivia, hangs her uniform in a balcony as she joins a nationwide feminist strike on International Women’s Day in Madrid, Spain. Photo by Sergio Perez/Reuters

In neighboring Portugal, the Cabinet observed a minute of silence Thursday as part of a day of national mourning it decreed for victims of domestic violence. Portuguese police say 12 women have died this year in domestic violence incidents — the highest number over the same period in 10 years.

FRANCE


Photo of Aissa Dumara Ngatansou from Agence Cameroun Press

In France, the first Simone Veil prize went Friday to a Cameroonian activist who has worked against forced marriages and other violence against girls and women.

Aissa Doumara Ngatansou was married against her will at age 15 but insisted upon continuing her studies as a young wife. She has since turned her attention to victims of Boko Haram extremists.

The French award is named for the trailblazing French politician and Holocaust survivor Veil, who spearheaded the fight to legalize abortion.

GERMANY


Female soldiers of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) distribute flowers to women during the International Women’s Day near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany. Photo by Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters

RUSSIA


Photo from youtube

Meanwhile in Russia, International Women’s Day is a public holiday but it mostly lauds gender roles that are now outdated. As is his custom every year, President Vladimir Putin gave a speech thanking women for their patience, good grace and support.

“You manage to do everything: both at work and at home and at the same time you remain beautiful, charismatic, charming, the center of gravity for the whole family, uniting it with your love,” Putin said.

(Photos continued in right column)

(Click here for the Spanish version of this article or here for the version in French.)

Question for this article

Prospects for progress in women’s equality, what are the short and long term prospects?

(Photos continued from left column)

INDONESIA


photo from Jakarta Post

In Indonesia’s capital Jakarta, several hundred men and women carried colorful placards calling for an end to discriminative practices such as the termination of employment for pregnancy and exploitative work contracts.

“Our action today is to urge (the government) for our right to a society that’s democratic, prosperous, equal and free from violence,” said Dian Trisnanti, a labor activist. Girls and women in Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous country, have equal access to education but face higher unemployment, lower wages and poorer working conditions than men.

IRAQ


On the International Women’s Day in Shikhan, north of Iraq, Yazidi women attend a ceremony at Lilash Temple to commemorate the death of women who were killed by Islamic State militants. Photo by Ari Jalal/Reuters

SOUTH AND NORTH KOREA

Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions attend during a rally to mark the International Women’s Day in downtown Seoul, South Korea, Friday, March 8, 2019. Photo from . Photo from National Post

Both Koreas marked the day. In the South, women wearing black cloaks and pointed hats marched against what they describe as a “witch hunt” of feminists in a deeply conservative society.

College student Noh Seo-young said that South Korea struggles to accept that women are “also humans” and that women have to fight until they can “walk around safely.”

In the North, where Women’s Day is one of the few national holidays that is not explicitly political in nature, people dressed up for family photo shoots or bought roses for their mothers or wives at the many small, bright orange street stalls in central Pyongyang that sell flowers. The stalls normally do most of their business selling flowers to be placed at the feet of statues to the country’s leaders.

PHILIPPINES

In the Philippines, hundreds of women in purple shirts used a noisy march and protest in Manila to call for the ouster of President Rodrigo Duterte, whom they rebuked for the often sexist jokes he cracks and authoritarian moves they say are threatening one of Asia’s liveliest democracies.

They toppled an ugly head effigy of Duterte from atop paper blocks with slogans depicting him as an American lapdog.

UNITED STATES

On the eve of International Women’s Day, U.S. first lady Melania Trump saluted women from 10 countries for their courage.

The recipients of the International Women of Courage Award included human rights activists, police officers and an investigative journalist. They came from Bangladesh, Djibouti, Egypt, Ireland, Jordan, Montenegro, Myanmar, Peru, Sri Lanka and Tanzania.

“Courage is what divides those who only talk about change from those who actually act to change,” Mrs. Trump said at a ceremony Thursday that was also attended by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Pompeo separately recognized women in Iran for protesting the requirement that they wear a head covering known as a hijab in public and a Ukrainian activist who died in 2018 after she was attacked with sulfuric acid.

EL SALVADOR


Activists take part in a demonstration during a nationwide feminist strike on International Women’s Day in San Salvador, El Salvador. Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters

ETHIOPIA

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who named one of the world’s few “gender-balanced” Cabinets last year, told a gathering that “women are the pillars of the nation and the least recognized for their sacrifices.”

NIGERIA

In Nigeria, the U.S. Embassy hosted talks on sexual harassment that included a founder of the recent #ArewaMeToo campaign among women in the country’s conservative, largely Muslim north.

NIGER

And in Niger, first lady Aissata Issoufou Mahamadou oversaw the awards in the Miss Intellect Niger contest.

KENYA

Women protested against gender-based violence in Kenya’s capital.
“We haven’t gotten to a stage where women are comfortable to come out and say, ‘I was sexually abused,’” said protester Esther Passaris. “So what we need to do is slowly, slowly grow.”

AP reporters across the globe contributed to this report. Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal.

global, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

Mexico: authorities sign agreement for peace in Tecomán

… EDUCATION FOR PEACE …

An article from AF Medios (translated by CPNN)

Municipal authorities, federal and civil society, have signed the Partnership for Peace Agreement which seeks to promote and promote a culture of peace in the municipality of Tecomán. Signatories include the municipal president of Tecomán, Elías Antonio Lozano Ochoa, the federal deputy, Hugo Rafael Ruíz Luster, along with the state delegate of Programs for the Development of the State of Colima, Indira Vizcaíno Silva, and the president of the Citizen Council AC, Nazario Rodríguez Guerra.


Participants in the event held on Wednesday [March 6] included the federal deputy Rosa María Bayardo Cabrera, the general director of Economic Development, Rubén Reyes Ramírez, the head of Economic Promotion, José de Jesús Figueroa Cuevas, officials of the administration and representatives of various social organizations.

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(Click here for the original article in Spanish)

Questions for this article:

Can peace be guaranteed through nonviolent means?

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Ruíz Lustre pointed out that society has a culture of war that leads it to commit acts by imitation.

“Therefore, every day at a younger age crimes are committed; That is why this agreement is being signed, which we started in Colima, the smallest and most violent state in the country. “Ruíz Lustre also mentioned that his main decision will be to promote, along with the Human Rights Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, an agreement for the previous military installations of the 20th Military Zone to become a Training Center for the Western Zone Police.

For its part, Indira Vizcaíno Silva said that the initiative coincides with the vision of the President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, to focus on prevention and promote a culture of peace and reconciliation.

Nazario Rodríguez Guerra, president of the Citizen Council said he was very worried about what has happened in Tecomán. “We must return to inculcate values, because we have fallen into consumerism and neglect. We need to achieve a peaceful society.”

To conclude, the mayor of Tecomán said he was convinced that peace is important for the development of communities, peoples and nations. “We are in this situation because we have stopped doing some important things, but I am also convinced that we will soon be able to reverse it and achieve better living conditions for all.”

[Editor’s Note: According to news reports, Tecomán has the highest crime rate in Mexico with with 164.5 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.
 

EDUCATION FOR PEACE, Latin America

El Salvador: Associations present project to promote a Culture of Peace

.. DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION ..

An article from Informa TVX (translation by CPNN)

The Association for the Development of El Salvador (CRIPDES) and the Research and Specialization Association on Ibero-American Issues (AIETI), have presented the project “Active and Strengthened Citizenship”, with the aim of promoting the culture of peace in 7 municipalities of La Libertad and San Salvador.


Video of the project

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(Click here for the article in Spanish)

Questions for this article:

How important is community development for a culture of peace?

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The representative of AIETI, César Apesteguia, said that the project for the culture of peace will last for 2 years, and will have an investment of more than 300 thousand euros.

For its part, the representative of CRIPDES, Ana Martínez, explained that the project will benefit children, young people and women, since they are the most vulnerable sector of the population.

The associations stated that the municipalities where the project will be implemented will be: Tacachico, Comasagua, Colón, Zaragoza, El Paisnal and Guazapa.

Likewise, they emphasized that young people, women and representatives of the ADESCOS will be trained to implement a citizen participation policy, as well as how to enforce their rights.
 

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, Latin America